An Observation of the Coloring of Vintage Meerschaum

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Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,343
The modern dogma for meerschaum pipes is to keep the chamber clean as carbon buildup prevents coloring and may lead to cracked bowls. I'm going to give up that practice temporarily after noticing something about these old pieces. They're heavily colored and have quite a bit of buildup. I think we've been robbing them of the ability to slowly absorb color from the accumulated tar and nicotine.

2-old-pipe-amber-sea-sculpts-meerschaum-late-nineteenth-century.jpg2-old-pipe-amber-sea-sculpts-meerschaum-late-nineteenth-century-1.jpgA95469D1-120B-4D35-AB91-32EFA7B54209_1_201_a.jpeg.jpg9011C997-AF07-4D5F-A618-E5792F784C08_1_201_a.jpeg.jpgScreenshot_20221209-024928_Gallery.jpgScreenshot_20221209-024936_Gallery.jpg
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,343
Is it possible those were oxblood coated pipes?
Up about halfway probably but I've seen other examples browsing around photos where the same phenomenon could be seen heavily colored with thick cake. If most of the vintage meerschaums are fully ox blood stained, does that mean that modern enthusiasts are chasing an impossible ideal? 🤔
 

TheWhale13

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 12, 2021
803
3,417
Sweden
The truth is, that you barely ever see a very colored modern meer. I've almost never seen a fully colored modern meer either. It doesn't suprise me that you could fully color one if you want to, but it seems like it would take an awful amount of time. Cake shouldn't really impede coloring that much I think, since the most moisture is concentrated in the shank and bottom of the bowl, where there isn't much cake anyways. But the way that those meers are uniformly cream-red colored, makes me think that they were in some way precolored?
 
Dec 3, 2021
4,792
40,293
Pennsylvania & New York
Up about halfway probably but I've seen other examples browsing around photos where the same phenomenon could be seen heavily colored with thick cake. If most of the vintage meerschaums are fully ox blood stained, does that mean that modern enthusiasts are chasing an impossible ideal? 🤔

The skull one looks to have colouring coating the whole pipe, the man half way as you suggest—the woman’s body looks fully coated and a thinner layer on the part above her. I probably only have one fully coated ox blood pipe in my collection, and it’s pretty dark red. The other Meerschaum cheroot pipes and tobacco pipes I have vary in whiteness and yellowness. Some had heavy cake (I don’t think smokers reamed as much as some people do today) and are not nearly as coloured as these three examples. You may be right that an impossible ideal is being sought.
 

TheWhale13

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 12, 2021
803
3,417
Sweden
It’s quite possible the only one with ox blood is the skull, looking at these more.

What I am now wondering is this: could it be the tobacco and how it was prepared in the 19th Century is responsible for that red tone that is so often seen?
Tobacco back then couldn't be much different from what it is now? Either they smoked their pipes a lot more, or they made the pipes differently, or they were precolored in some way. I don't know what else to think about it.
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,343
I think you're on to something. My meer is caked up just like my briars and it seems to color a hell of a lot faster and more deeply then what other people are showing. I guess the advice to smoke it like a briar wasn't bad at all.
Oh and the skull is the only one that looks oxblooded to me.
I'm going to give it a go. When cake is heated, it softens. That may be what is being absorbed and being meticulously clean with them is taking away the opportunity to do so.
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,343
Me too. I'll try to build a real big cake in my meer. I guess we'll see how it turns out. I am at least not worried about it cracking, just because I'm personally convinced that a bit of carbon buildup will not crack a rock.
My reverse calabash has been an often companion for a few days, I think it will be my first victim.
 

TheWhale13

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 12, 2021
803
3,417
Sweden
We've also read about buttons and such, which might help with coloring. But I've also read about a practice that they used in the old days for meers. They used a "tobacco plug" which, if I understand correctly, is just that they keep the wet dottle in the bottom of the chamber like a plug, and leave it there for every smoke. It might help with coloring considering how wet it would become in time, but it might also taste disgusting. I tried it for a few smokes some time ago, and it worked fine, and I believe that it might help it color too?
 

didimauw

Moderator
Staff member
Jul 28, 2013
9,889
31,595
34
Burlington WI
This is very interesting you thought of this cake idea. As I have been smoking my bent SMS a lot in the last few days. Noticed how fast it's been coloring, and how little I've actually cleaned it. To the point where my last smoke was wet hot and gross. When I got home, I reamed the bowl, and A LOT of thick cake came out. A lot more than I thought was in there. So in theory, it had a lot of cake, and started coloring faster than normal too. Maybe I'll stop clearing the cake too, and see how it goes. And when my brand new meer arrives, I'll leave the cake. Mmm cake.....